In 2005, Sprint and Nextel joined forces in the form of a corporate merger at a cost of $35 billion in cash and stock. At the time, the merger made the company the third largest US cellular carrier. Sprint CEO Gary Forsee was appointed CEO of the combined company, while Nextel CEO Timothy Donahue was the chairman. It was expected that customers would benefit with expanded network capabilities and product offerings. The new entity would benefit from operational cost savings and technological advances. Although the merger appeared to be a good deal, the two entities’ organizational cultures were not thoroughly vetted. Organizational culture is one of the reasons the SprintNextel merger came to an end in 2013 with the shutting down of Nextel.
For this assignment, assess the impact of culture with the merger between Sprint and Nextel. Your evaluation should include an analysis of how the cultures of Sprint and Nextel differ.
